The present invention relates to multi-piece golf balls having a resilient solid core, a resin cover, and at least one intermediate layer therebetween.
In the past, solid golf balls have been optimized for properties such as core and cover hardness under relatively high-spin conditions (e.g., conditions where the backspin of the ball when hit with a driver is about 3,000 rpm) in order to improve the feel of the ball upon impact and its controllability (so that shots often stop on the green).
However, it was later found that a golf ball hit at a low spin and a high launch angle will travel a longer distance. With recent advances in golfing equipment such as balls and clubs, it is no longer unusual today for a ball hit by a club designed for distance, such as a driver, to have a backspin of 2,000 rpm or less.
Under such low-spin conditions, the ball that has been hit will have a low coefficient of drag, which acts to increase its travel distance. Yet, with the dimples that have hitherto been used in golf balls, the drop due to insufficient lift in the low-speed region after the highest point of the ball's trajectory has resulted in a loss of distance.